Fly High
by Pocky King Windy
Summary: Yaoi: Hiroshi x Ryuichi - Ryuichi reminisces on the time when he was to leave for America. Meanwhile, Hiroshi has a suggestion; is the sky so unreachable after all?


Fly-High

フライ・ハーイ

Disclaimer: These characters belong to Murakami Maki ©. The fanfiction belongs to me.

Warning: Yaoi. Trust me, if you flame despite these warnings… well, I can only say that you're retarded.

Plot Cockroach: A short little nothing written just for updates. I know I should be working for Weiß at the moment, but my muse - *kicks Plot Cockroach* - just wouldn't wake up from his hibernation. I've switched temporarily to KumaKuma-chan, but he's too busy plotting Takatori's _accidental_ death. Hey, hey! I said accidental! ^__^ Anyway, this is a short story featuring the talented Nakano and the great Ryuichi!

Pairing: Hiroshi x Ryuichi

Note: The characters look like that from the manga. However, the storyline is a confusing mix between the manga and TV series. (Yeah, whatever I forget or screw up I mix in. 9_9 Meow ha!)

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"Fly high na no na no da!"

The skies were blue that day. A flock of white migratory birds flickered past in the sky, spreading the wings against the west wind. Fall was ending, and winter was set to stride round the corner. Bittersweet.

It was a crisp, cool afternoon.

"Up into the sky!" Ryuichi cheered. He was alone in the park. The preschoolers and children were all either at home or in school, it being a windy day then. Their mothers were probably afraid that they'd catch a cold. But as for him, well, he wasn't really worried. Kumagoro was there to warm him up and keep him safe, after all.

For a fall day, the skies were remarkably blue. A few fluffy clouds floated by, and above a thicker set loomed. The grass remained a faint shade of green, and beside Ryuichi was another swing, intact, and another that was broken. He sighed; he liked having company, especially that of his friends.

But he knew that they couldn't make it no matter how hard they tried. Tohma was busy running NG Records, Noriko was busy as well with her composing, and Shuichi was busy with his own recording. Given, the pink-haired singer would do anything to please Ryuichi, but he knew better than to demand that attention. Yuki deserved it more.

"Where even birds fail to fly," his words faded into the thin air, foreign as they were. Somehow, Japan felt at home.

No matter how long he lived in America, Ryuichi could never forget his roots. Small, petite, pretty, he was a typical Japanese boy-band singer, it didn't matter how he was looked at; it never changed the fact that he was Sakuma Ryuichi, with a sweet smile and a pretty lilt to his voice, a carefree air and a pink stuffed rabbit.

A great tree towered over him. Its leaves were beginning to fall, one by one, plummeting to the ground. Red, gold, brown and green, it all swirled around him and danced in the wind as they descended.

And one day, Bad Luck will stand by his side, singing…

"That would be some time from now, na no da," Ryuichi told Kumagoro. "But Shu-chan singing side by side with us, that's a good thing, I'd really like that! He's so nice, isn't he, na no ka?"

"Yes, with Fujisaki-san and Nakano-san, it's nice," Kumagoro agreed wholeheartedly. Ryuichi flushed.

"Aa, that's right, na no da! Suguru-kun composes well, and Hiro-kun is fun! He's a good guitarist too! If only Nittle Grasper had a guitarist, na no da, then we'll do finer! Shiny, shinier na no da!" he replied as he swung upwards, his feet in the air. "Shinier than the sun!"

"Hiro-kun… Ryu-chan, do you…?"

Ryuichi paused in mid-stride to position his swing, rather thoughtfully. There wasn't anything he could hide from the intelligent Kumagoro-chan, and he knew better than to try.

"…He's very nice, no da?"

"I guess that's why…"

Ryuichi nodded. "A little, just a little. Not much, just to a small extent, but just looking… it makes me happy enough. Hiro-kun is high, high like the sky. Ryu-chan may be a rock-god, but even then… rock-gods can't hope to be able to touch the sky and keep it."

"Right." There was a silence, a peaceful silence. The brunet sighed.

"K-san, Tohma, Sakano-san…" he laughed. "How many do these add up? Even in America, I wasn't really happy, was I, na no ka? I… I have to admit, that was why I left Japan... only to come back later and mess my life up again. I'm a stupid, stupid dreamer, aren't I?"

Kumagoro didn't answer.

"I have everything in life, everything a man ever wanted, but ---"

"Sakuma-sama!"

Ryuichi shot up, shocked. He smiled as he recognized the person walking up to them. "Hi, Hiro-kun!"

"So… what're you doing here?" Hiroshi grinned back. "Not practicing?"

"I guess not… In a slump, na no da," Ryuichi replied breezily. That was one thing he was proud of – he never betrayed his emotions, no matter how sad he was. Always he was Ryuichi, happy, fun, easy to get along with. To be sad would make other people sad, and he didn't like that idea much. "I can't write a word."

"No?" Hiroshi took a seat next to Ryuichi, on the swing next to him. He began to paddle in the air, moving slightly. Hiroshi looked thoughtful as he bobbed up and down. "Yeah, I guess it can be tough. Shuichi gives us the creeps each time he tries too. Like, laughing all a sudden with no apparent reason and all that…"

"Poor Shu-chan!" the singer chuckled. "Being new to the scene, and working too hard isn't a good thing, na no da! Hiro-kun shouldn't work too hard either, music is to be enjoyed, to have fun with!"

"I totally agree," Hiroshi rolled his eyes. "To us, maybe. And that's why we're going along fine. But to Sakano…"

"He can get a little… um, excited," Ryuichi wrinkled his nose as he recalled his past with Sakano in Nittle Grasper.

"OH GOD! YOU'RE LATE! WE'RE GONNA BE 5 MINUTES PAST THE DEADLINE! WOE TO US! AAAAAAIIIHHH!" the guitarist mimicked his producer's horrified antics.

"SEGUCHI-SAN! I'M SORRY! I TAKE THE RESPONSIBILITY!" Ryuichi chipped in. "Ha, ha! Even after three years, the good old panicky Sakano-san hasn't changed much!"

"Yeah… and maybe he misses Nittle Grasper too," Hiroshi became serious all a sudden. "Maybe he misses you as much, Sakuma-sama."

"… Well, eh… Good old times are precious na no da!" Ryuichi blushed, looking away. "I suppose you understand that."

"Hmm, you know what, I'll tell you what I understand," Hiroshi fingered his hair. "Sakano-san's made the biggest mistake of his life. He's probably regretting it now."

"What do you mean?"

"Three years ago, he should've stopped you." Hiroshi looked straight into the rock-singer's eyes. "He should've left Seguchi-san to his own plans, and stopped you before you boarded that plane."

"What…" Ryuichi's eyes widened. "How…?"

"He was drunk," Hiroshi replied. "When he admitted it. Three years ago, he was at the airport. And, he had a choice then. You would have listened, wouldn't you, Ryuichi?"

The singer swallowed hard. He remembered that evening, the fateful day he was to leave for America to start a new life, a new step to his old career. Sakano was there, and… they didn't exchange much banter. A smile, a handshake… "Goodbye"… and that was all. But were Sakano to say that…

He would have listened.

"…Why are you telling me this?" Ryuichi asked. "I… did he ask you to?"

"No, I did it on my own accord."

"Then… why?"

"Because I'm not giving up," Hiroshi replied, his eyes shimmering with some strange emotion. "Not easily, anyway."

"Hi… Hiro-kun…"

Hiroshi leaned towards him, against the metal handles of the swing he was occupying. He pressed his lips gently against Ryuichi's, brushing just a little, to feel that warm sweetness in that crisp fall day. And in an instant, it was over. They stared at each other for the longest moment yet.

"You… overhead our conversation na no ka?" Strangely, Ryuichi wasn't angry. He didn't know what he was feeling, but whatever it was, it felt right. He wasn't about to fight it, not just then. Hiroshi nodded.

"Yeah, I did… and I have to remind you, Sakuma-sama," his grin reappeared. "You can touch the sky if you boarded a plane."

Ryuichi burst into laughter, followed by Hiroshi. In the wide blue sky, a minute shape of an airplane sailed by, into the clouds and out. Winter was just around the corner, and may it be the best winter yet.

~*~*~ End ~*~*~

Note: Ohh yeah! Finished na no da! Poor Sakano-san, I really played with his feelings, the timid Sakano-san! Haha, maybe Tohma-kun will like this more! ^___^ Thanks for reading!


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